Iranian elections, the Cannes Film Festival and a theater troupe from Australia

Iranians will head to the polls on June 14th. The candidates include Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the former president, who still needs to face the vetting process by the Guardian Council. Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei, who has ties to the current president, is also amongst those in the running for president. Ahmad Sadri, Professor of Sociology at Lake Forest College, tells us about the candidates and shares his predictions.

A birds eye view from the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival

Film contributor Milos Stehlik arrived in Cannes last week and has been busy viewing this year's best and worst films. He'll tell us about some of the highlights so far, including Le Joli Mai,Le Passéby Asghar Farhadi and Heli, a film from Mexican director Amat Escalante.

Festival de Cannes - From 15th to 26th May 2013Jane Campion All the news The Daily Steven Spielberg 65 years in pictures Archives Official Selection Videos Marché du Film All the artic...

"THE PAST" by Asghar Farhadi - TRAILERMemento Films International

Flo and @LanaDelRey hit the red carpet at Cannes for last night's Great Gatsby gala opening screening (FloHQ) pic.twitter.com/iXszcFGGQxflorence welch

Weekend Passport: Israeli jazz, Russian ballet, an Ethiopian chef from Sweden, and more

Global citizen Nari Safavi helps listeners plan their international weekend. This week we’ll tell you where to hear Yiddish traditional folk music and live jazz and where to see a one-of-a-kind theater company from Australia.

Back to Back Theatre presents "Ganesh Versus the Third Reich"

Part of the Bodies of Work Festival of Disability Arts & Culture

When: May 16-19, various times

Where: Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave.

The Bodies of Work Festival features cutting-edge disability arts and culture created by professional artists. Enjoy theater, music, art, and other artistic forms at venues including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Victory Gardens Theater, Lookingglass Theater, Raven Theater, the Hyde Park Art Center. These events are both cultural and educational, and promise to illuminate disability experiences.

Come experience Back to Back Theatre, an Australian independent theater company with a unique ensemble of actors with disabilities. "Ganesh Versus the Third Reich" is a "cleverly interwoven tale-within-a-tale that begins with the elephant-headed god Ganesh traveling through Nazi Germany to reclaim the Swastika, the sacred Hindu symbol of higher being. The story becomes a second transformative quest as the group of struggling actors rise to take power from an overbearing director, giving rise to issues of cultural appropriation, the responsibilities of those who speak for others, and what constitutes myth, reality or even normalcy."

Ganesh Versus the Third ReichHopkins Center

Back to Back Theatrehopdartmouth

Israeli Jazz Festival

When: May 19 - 23, 2013

Where: Various locations, please click here for a full schedule of performances

From the foreign to the familiar, from Israel to Chicago, for five days, the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest presents the first Israeli Jazz Festival in Chicago. The festival will highlight the full spectrum of the diverse jazz music scene in Israel. The artists reflect the international and multi-cultural diversity found throughout Israel. Such influences have inspired the music which ranges from Afro –Caribbean to Latin fusion, from Ethio-Jazz to Jewish Klezmer, and from Middle Eastern to smooth, straight-ahead Jazz.

Jazz Articles: The Israeli Jazz Wave: Promised Land to Promised Land - By Andrew Gilbert - Jazz ArticlesIsrael is always in the headlines, and the news is invariably bad. The plight of the Palestinians, apocalyptic threats from Iran's presid...

The Columbia ChronicleSince the birth of jazz in late 19th century, when southern black communities infused European harmonies with improvisation, swinging not...

Chef Marcus Samuelsson at Merchandise Market

When: Saturday, May 18th, 4pm - 6pm

Where: Merchandise Mart (Snaidero Showroom), 350 N. Orleans St.

Come get a taste of Chef Marcus Samuelsson's path from an orphanage in Ethiopia to Sweden and New York. Enjoy wine and hors d'oeuvres inspired by some of Chef Samuelsson's most famous dishes and receive your own personally-signed copy of "Yes, Chef." Proceeds of this event will help support over 3,000 Chicago students gain culinary and leadership skills through the Careers Through Culinary Arts Program.

"Choreographed by Boris Eifman, Rodin, is based on the life of French sculptor Auguste Rodin and his turbulent relationship with his mistress and muse, Camille Claudel. Set to music by Saint-Saëns, Massenet and Ravel, Rodin is a tale of artistic inspiration and the terrible price of genius.

Oleg Gabyshev, Principal Dancer of the Eifman Ballet, received the Golden Mask Russian National Theater Award for the title role in "Rodin.""

Add a little bit of Klezmer (Yiddish folk music), Tum Balalaika (known for its repertoire of Russian, Romanian, and gypsy music), an all-you-care-to-eat buffet, and you get magic!

City Winery has been hosting the Klezmer brunch since its opening in 2012. "We bring different Klezmer brand bands in every Sunday. The music starts around 10:30am and goes until 1:00pm. Musicians do two sets and it’s not only a great music experience, but a great brunch deal. There's a dancing area in front of the stage so that people can get up and dance. Plus, there's candy for the kids. They love it." —Rob, City Winery

Tum Balalaika Yiddish Song by Tum Balalaika Klezmer Band Chicagopetersadkhin